DELIA CHATOOR

ON JULY 17, 1998, the Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) was adopted at a diplomatic conference in Rome, Italy and on July 1, 2002, the statute itself entered into force.

The court was established to exercise jurisdiction over the crime of genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and aggression as they were deemed to be 'the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole.' The reasons advanced for an ICC included the desire to end impunity, address the deficiencies of a number of ad hoc tribunals which had been set up by the United Nations (UN), assist in ending conflicts, to prevent the commission of future war crimes, and respond when domestic criminal jurisdiction courts are unwilling or unable to act.

In 1989, TT, with the support of Caricom member states, placed before the UN the question of whether it was feasible to establish an ICC. Following discussions the International Law Commission (ILC) submitted in 1994 the final version of a draft statute for an ICC which it was proposed could form the basis for negotiations.

TT and her Caricom partners were anxious to find solutions to the illegal activities associated with illicit drug trafficking and other corrupt practices of a transnational character. International developments, however, which included the unravelling of the former Yugoslavia and the events in the Great Lakes region of Africa, led to concerns that domestic tribunals wherever they were operational may not have been capable of addressing international law offences.

The emphasis, therefore, shifted from the illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs and terrorism to the crime of genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and aggression. The negotiations focused on these but when the Rome Statute was adopted in 1998, provision was made for a review mechanism (Article 123) as it was recognised 'that the international trafficking of narcotic drugs is a very serious crime, sometimes destabilising the political and social and economic order in states.' The review conference would consider the crimes of terrorism and drug crimes once there was an acceptable definition for its inclusion in the statute.

At the first review conference of the Rome Statute in June 2010, TT and Belize submitted a proposed amendment to Article 5 of the statute which would enable the ICC to have jurisdiction over 'the crime of international drug trafficking.' A definition was also presented. There was no discussion, however, and the proposal was referred to the ICC's Assembly of States Parties (ASP).

Since its operationalisation, TT has been successful in the election of four judges to the ICC, namely:

Karl Hudson-Phillips (2003-2007)

Anthony Carmona (2012-2013)

Justice Geoffrey A Henderson (2013-2021)

Justice Althea Violet Alexis-Windsor, elected in 2021 for a term of nine years

After 25 years, it is fitting for states parties to assess the work of the ICC. In light of recent international developments, calls have been made on what could e